Geography

Mountainous Bhutan, half the size of Indiana, is
situated on the southeast slope of the Himalayas, bordered on the north
and east by Tibet and on the south and west and east by India. The
landscape consists of a succession of lofty and rugged mountains and deep
valleys. In the north, towering peaks reach a height of 24,000 ft (7,315
m).

Government

Bhutan's first national elections in March 2008
marked the country's shift from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional
monarchy.

History

Although archaeological exploration of Bhutan
has been limited, evidence of civilization in the region dates back to at
least 2000
B.C.
Aboriginal Bhutanese, known as
Monpa, are believed to have migrated from Tibet. The traditional name of
the country since the 17th century has been Drukyul, Land of the Drokpa
(Dragon People), a reference to the dominant branch of Tibetan Buddhism
that is still practiced in the Himalayan kingdom.

For centuries, Bhutan was made up of feuding
regions until it was unified under King Ugyen Wangchuck in 1907. The
British exerted some control over Bhutan's affairs, but never colonized
it. Until the 1960s, Bhutan was largely isolated from the rest of the
world, and its people carried on a tranquil, traditional way of life,
farming and trading, which had remained intact for centuries. After China
invaded Tibet, however, Bhutan strengthened its ties and contact with
India in an effort to avoid Tibet's fate. New roads and other connections
to India began to end its isolation. In the 1960s, Bhutan also undertook
social modernization, abolishing slavery and the caste system,
emancipating women, and enacting land reform. In 1985, Bhutan made its
first diplomatic links with non-Asian countries.

A pro-democracy campaign emerged in 1991, which
the government claimed was composed largely of Nepali immigrants. As a
result, some 100,000 Nepali civil servants were either evicted or
encouraged to emigrate. Most of them crossed the border back into Nepal,
where they were housed in UN-administered refugee camps. They continue to
languish there a decade later.

In 1998, King Jigme Singye Wangchuck, who is
Bhutan's fourth hereditary ruler, voluntarily curtailed his absolute
monarchy, and in March 2005 released a draft constitution (not yet put to
a referendum) that outlined plans for the country to shift to a two-party
democracy. In Dec. 2006, he abdicated in favor of his son, and Crown
Prince Jigme Khesar Namgyal Wangchukin became king. Prime Minister Lyonpo
Khandu Wangchuk resigned in July 2007 so he could join a political party
in anticipation of the country's first elections, scheduled to be held in
early 2008. Lyonpo Kinzang Dorji took over as the interim prime
minister.